Home Brew

John Lewis is brewing up a storm - 12.06.07

This is turning into a very busy week for Doug and Sheridan! First of all the Daily Mail announced the come-back of the Teasmade in an article on 11th June.

The Telegraph also ran an article stating that John Lewis, the department store chain, is planning to bring back the Teasmade after customers' complaints that they could no longer buy the machine.

A whole series of media events has followed swiftly on their tails.

11th June - Doug was interviewed on Radio 5 Live.

11th June - Sheridan interviewed for an article in The Guardian pronouncing the teawaker "the greatest advancement in civilisation since the aqueduct".

12th June - Doug was filmed by GMTV (see photo left).

12th June - Micromark announced that it is leading the revival of the teasmade and that the Daily Mail and the Telegraph are wrong – teasmades ARE available on the UK high street. They write:

"What’s the latest trend in electrical products in UK bedrooms? Leading electrical company Micromark is instrumental in leading the comeback of the nation’s favourite from yesteryear – the teasmade. Contrary to recent articles in both the Daily Mail and Telegraph, Micromark Teaexpress teasmades are still available to buy from leading retailers on our high streets."

"What better way to wake up than with a gentle hissing and bubbling as your tea brews to signal the start of the day? It’s the ideal gentle wake up call without the need to leave the warmth and comfort of the bedroom. Very popular from the 1950’s era, selling millions of units, the humble teasmade is making a serious comeback in the UK – sales are booming and major retailers such as Argos are stocking them."

Julie Dommett, Marketing Director at Micromark, says: “We’re definitely seeing the revival of the teasmade, it’s now one of our best-selling lines. There’s nothing like a freshly brewed cuppa to revive you in the morning. They used to have an old-fashioned image from when our parents or grand-parents used them, but not anymore. With today’s stylish designs, the teasmade is making practical sense for the nation’s Mums and Dads all over again."

12th June - The Times published a (tasteless) joke!

12th June - Doug interviewed and photographed by the Daily Mirror (but never published)

12th June - Doug interviewed by Southern Counties radio

13th June - Doug interviewed by BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

13th June - a letter about a teawaker inventor published in the Telegraph

14th June - Teawakers and our very own Teasmaniacs featured on Radio 4's You and Yours programme. You can listen to the programme again on their website after 3pm on 14th June.

16th June - An article about Teasmades by Richard Hammond in the Daily Mirror.

20th June - Sheridan interviewed on MacAulay and Co for BBC Radio Scotland

23rd June - Channel 4's All About Food programme is likely to be aired today. The subject will be 'Tea' and it will feature Doug and his collection.

6th July - an article about Doug in the Croydon Advertiser.
They also created a photomontage which you can see here.

7th July - a letter about Teasmade parts to be published in the Guardian

Spelling Test - 01.07.06

This week in my son's primary school spelling test he was given the word 'teasmade' to spell. I will check with the teacher next week to find out how old the test is and whether she wrote it herself. Maybe this is the first sign of a revival in public awareness!

I wonder whether this counts as generic use of the word teasmade? Should Littlewoods be concerned? And I wonder how many of these young children have actually seen a teasmade, or indeed a teawaker of any sort?

Another 15 minutes of fame - 02.06.06

Over the last two days Doug and I have been visited by Touch Productions 'low impact crew' (gosh, I'm picking up the lingo already!) for a 15 minute documentary short for Channel 4. The programme will be one in a series of five on great British inventions. The series will also feature the polypropylene stacking chair, the Morris Minor, the London Cab and the deckchair.

I have done a couple of radio appearances before now. Maggie Philbin and Vanessa Feltz were my interviewers. In each case they were charming and professional and thankfully I found them both very supportive, which made the experience a painless one. This, however, was my first venture into the world of television. The Touch Productions crew were delightful and gave me just enough confidence to do a passable job. We set up four teasmades in my kitchen for the filming and they behaved impeccably.

The presenter will be Charlie Luxton, best known for the TV series Dreamspaces. I don't think anyone will be rushing to offer me a job as a presenter quite yet! The programme will probably be screened some time after mid August - we'll try to let you know!

Off the Beaten Track - 02.06.06

Well done Doug! 'Off The Beaten Track' was screened on London ITV on Thursday 25th May at 7.30 pm. Doug did a sterling job and his amazing collection in its purpose built extension enjoyed a starring role. I thought Nigel (who earned his stardom in A Place in France) portrayed the history of the teasmade very sensitively. It was also lovely to see David Swift, the present owner of George Absolom's house in Hayes. David was of great assistance when I first delved into the history of George Absolom's Teesmade (sic). I hope he enjoyed the experience of being on TV.

Doug and Nigel

Tea-Total - 05.05.06

Adam Vince created the 'Tea-Total' beverage maker as a design project for his degree. It features a large lamp, am/fm radio, milk cooler and removable kettle. The water is manually pumped using the bellows at the top, this means the unit can be used as a cold water dispenser and it bypasses EU legislation that caused problems with the Tea:AM and TeaExpress.

Adam says "The project is completely feasible if any company were to show an interest. Please email me if you require more information. My degree show is in June and the Tea:Total will be displayed there for people to look at".

Charlie's Isn't - 04.05.06

This convincing looking teawaker isn't the real thing. It's a clever one off retro styled Teawaker built by website visitor Charlie after seeing the early machines featured on Teawaker.com.

It uses the clock movement and kettle table from a D26 Teasmade. The kettle is from an early D25 (care of Doug). The remains of a Sterling mantle clock form the upper part of the case and provide the clock face and bezel. When the kettle has boiled, an electronic timer starts to run and turns on an external table lamp after the tea has had some time to brew. Unsuprisingly that nerve shattering buzzer didn't end up in the new machine.

Charlie says, "Hope you don't think this was too sacreligious a thing to do to my D26".

Doug on TV - 29.04.06

Doug and his collection are to feature on the programme 'Off The Beaten Track' which will be screened on London ITV on Thursday 25th May at 7.30 pm. The presenter is Nigel Farrel of A Place in France (remember Nippie & Nigel?)
Doug says: "The TV shoot went fine. The team arrived at 3.30 and left at 6.00. Everbody was really impressed with the collection. They had been to Hayes in the morning to see Absolom's garage and on to me in the afternoon."

The Teasmade - an English Icon? - 28.04.06

I have nominated the Teasmade as an icon of England. Please pop along to the wonderful Icons website and vote for the teasmade!